Fender Stratocaster question.

[jgcable]

Hey guys, a bro of mine just bought a brand new Fender American Standard strat in tobacco 3 tone with a maple neck, H/S/S config with the S-1 switching system.
The humbucker is pretty nice, the switching system allows for many tonal options but frankly I was surprised that it came stock with Tex-Mex pickups. For a $950.00 strat the least they could have did was offer it with USA pickups like maybe Texas Specials. Any opinions?

[Jim Shine]

Re: Fender Stratocaster question.

Do you mean it is an "American Strat HSS"? The American Standard is long gone. To be 100% honest, I do not see any difference in construction of the USA standard pickups and the mexico made high grade pickups. Even the bobbins are identical. I believe the winding machines are too. If it weren't for the part numbers being different, anyone would have a hard time figuring out which is which.

[jgcable]

Re: Fender Stratocaster question.

Yea Jim, his model is the American Strat HSS.
He called me up today mentioning how he thinks the Tex-Mex pickups sound like crap and not nearly as good as the USA made pickups in his other strats. They were quite noisy but I would expect that from any single coil. I am pretty sure he is bringing it back to the store today and returning it. He is basically ticked off that he bought a USA strat and it has Mexican electronics. I am kind of surprised too.

[hippietim]

Re: Fender Stratocaster question.

Tex-Mex is the model name. They're overwound vintage pickups. They're the same pickups as in the Jimmy Vaughan Signature Strat. I could be wrong but I thought that most of the non-CS Fender pickups were made in Mexico.

[Jim Shine]

Re: Fender Stratocaster question.

I find all non-reverse wound single coils to be noisy. Texas Specials have a reverse wound middle pickup to hum cancel on in between positions.

[Twisteramps]

Re: Fender Stratocaster question.

I guess I'm in the minority, but there are very few guitars with stock pickups that I really like. I'd rather have a nice set of duncans or even dimarzio singles than ANY fender pickups, but maybe that's just me.

Pete

[Lordofgain]

Re: Fender Stratocaster question.

My American Deluxe has the old noiseless pups in them not the S-1 system and they sound great for what the guitar is designed for.

[jgcable]

Re: Fender Stratocaster question.

My Plus has the gold noiseless in it too. They are really wimpy in regards to output but they have a nice clear tone.

[Grandturk]

Re: Fender Stratocaster question.

I think Fender's got some of the best single coils out there - I mean, they have been making them for 50 some odd years, so they do know a thing or two. I have a set of their old Custom Shop 50's... I think they make 54's and Fat 50's now, whatever... and they kill in my 54 RI. I've compared them to Fralins, and I just think the Fender's are a little bit nicer. I've used Texas Specials extensively in the past and they kill - lots of grind and punch. That said, I would likely swap out the pickups from any of the American series for their Custom Shop brothers.

[Chuckracer]

Re: Fender Stratocaster question.

My Robert Cray Strat has THE best single coils I've ever used. Even the bridge single sounds amazing, and like Pete I'm not a fan of bridge single coils. These are Custom Shop pickups. Terrific stuff!

[magh8]

Re: Fender Stratocaster question.

[ QUOTE ]
My Plus has the gold noiseless in it too. They are really wimpy in regards to output but they have a nice clear tone.

[/ QUOTE ]you think so? I love my gold lacesensors that is the only guitar that I own that hasn't had a pickup changed.the only thing I changed on the guitar was the plastic knobs to metal domes

[jgcable]

Re: Fender Stratocaster question.

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
My Plus has the gold noiseless in it too. They are really wimpy in regards to output but they have a nice clear tone.

[/ QUOTE ]you think so? I love my gold lacesensors that is the only guitar that I own that hasn't had a pickup changed.the only thing I changed on the guitar was the plastic knobs to metal domes

[/ QUOTE ]

I haven't changed mine either and I have no plans to. They are low output but they are completely silent and they sound great.

[Jim Shine]

Re: Fender Stratocaster question.

Lace sensors and Noiseless pickups are not really single coils in the traditional sense. I don't count them when talking about single coil pickups as they really are a whole other animal.

[Deneb]

Re: Fender Stratocaster question.

The vintage noisless in the strat deluxe I got from JG are really quiet, and they sound good, however, I can't get a good metal tone from them. Then I put a duncan distortion in the bridge, it's so damn hot, that the volume drop is drastic when playing in the neck position.

makes me sad [img]/images/graemlins/frown.gif[/img]

[hippietim]

Re: Fender Stratocaster question.

Why not try a PAF or some other lower output HB?